While half the lost mobiles were never reclaimed, 93 per cent of laptops and 85 per cent of PDAs were returned to their rightful owners - mostly as the result of them being tracked down by cab drivers.

"There has never been a doubt that London taxi drivers are anything but honest - this survey certainly proves the point," said Taxi Newspaper editor Stuart Pessok.

The survey, which quizzed 131 of the capital's 24,000 licensed cab drivers, also claimed the more bizarre items left in cabs included a small girl, a cat, a goldfish in a water-filled bag, and a suitcase packed with diamonds and £2,000 in cash. ®